1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to electronic devices enabled to receive radio frequency signals. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a communication device enabled to receive Global Positioning System (GPS) signals.
2. Description of Related Art
Some electronic devices suffer from poor performance because of inherent antenna patterns, which feature nulls pointing upward. For example, a GPS antenna pattern observed in a handheld electronic device can comprise a main lobe and a secondary lobe. In existing handheld electronic devices, which use a main subscriber antenna for GPS reception, the main lobe of the GPS antenna pattern is pointed downward. The GPS antenna pattern can feature a null pointing upward, which reduces the link margin with GPS satellites transmitting from the upper hemisphere, assuming that the electronic device is in a substantially vertical position. The null in the antenna pattern can be produced by the strong radio frequency (RF) currents that flow in a ground plane of the handheld electronic device when a monopole like GPS antenna is used.
In view of the above, GPS reception on many products may not satisfy the desired specifications. This can prevent the reliable operation of GPS enabled devices. Better performance can allow running numerous GPS applications on electronic devices, such as mobile phones, and can improve overall user experience by enabling features like GPS navigation and other location-related applications.